Survey Shows 37% of Employers Plan to Increase Number of Employees in 2014

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Express Employment Professionals releases the results of a survey giving a glimpse into this year’s hiring trends among American businesses. The survey shows the potential negative impact raising the minimum wage would have on hiring.

Employers Answer Minimum Wage Questions

Major policy changes, like raising the minimum wage, could mean employers won’t have the resources to put more people to work despite their desire to.

Oklahoma City, OK (PRWEB)April 30, 2014

Express Employment Professionals, the nation’s largest privately held staffing firm, today released the results of a survey that gives a glimpse into this year’s hiring trends among American businesses. The survey also shows the potential negative impact raising the minimum wage would have on hiring.

If the minimum wage is not increased, 37 percent of employers surveyed say they plan to increase the number of employees on their payrolls this year. Sixty percent expect to keep the same number of employees, and only three percent say they plan to decrease the number of their employees.

However, if the minimum wage is increased to $10.10, those hiring trends could change dramatically. The survey finds that 39 percent of respondents would reduce future hiring. Among those employers who currently pay the minimum wage, 54 percent would reduce future hiring.

“It’s good news that more than one third of employers plan to hire new workers this year,” said Bob Funk, CEO of Express, and a former chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. “Of course, because Americans desperately need jobs, we wish that number were even higher. But it’s a promising sign, especially when coupled with the fact that less than three percent of employers plan to cut back.

“Nevertheless, those plans are not set in stone. Major policy changes, like raising the minimum wage, could mean employers won’t have the resources to put more people to work despite their desire to. Policymakers should certainly keep that in mind as minimum wage increases are debated in Washington, D.C., and state capitals.”

Responses came from a February 2014 survey of 1,213 business owners and HR professionals nationwide, 230 of which reported paying their employees the current minimum wage. The survey is part of Express Employment Professionals “America Employed” campaign, a series of releases that explores the state of employment and focuses on who gets hired and why.

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About Robert A. “Bob” Funk
Robert A. “Bob” Funk is chairman and chief executive officer of Express Employment Professionals. Headquartered in Oklahoma City, the international staffing company has more than 675 franchises in the U.S., Canada and South Africa. Under his leadership, Express has put more than five million people to work worldwide. Funk served as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City and was also the Chairman of the Conference of Chairmen of the Federal Reserve.

About Express Employment Professionals
Express Employment Professionals puts people to work. It generated more than $2.5 billion in sales and employed nearly 400,000 people in 2013, and ranks as the largest privately held staffing agency in the United States. Its long-term goal is to put a million people to work annually.